Fear
by Bubblies
Summary: A rapist/murderer got let off and now he has Olivia and Alex in his sights. There will be pairing of some sort, but you'll have to wait and see.
1. Chapter 1

I don't own anything or anyone.

Feedback would be good :-)

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"I don't get it. This guy raped fifteen women, that we're aware of, stole thousands of dollars from them, and killed five people, two of which were cops. We know he did it. Hell, he knows we know he did it, but we have nothing. Nothing at all. He's laughing at us." Detective Elliot Stabler put his hands behind his head and leaned back on his chair.

His partner, Olivia Benson, was perched on his desk, rubbing her temples. "Maybe Alex can use what we've got."

"What we've got?" Alex marched into the room, and stopped beside Stabler's desk, "What we've got is nothing. I can't use any of it.."

"What?" Olivia stood up and turned towards the ADA, "What do you mean it can't be used?"

"None of it was aquired legally. You guys stuffed up and now you have nothing."

"Stuffed up?" Olivia took a step towards Alex, "What the hell.."

"Alright, that's enough!" Captain Cragan hurried out of his office and over to the girls to stop a potentially vicious conversation. He stepped in between the two women, gave Olivia a look that said _Back off_, then turned to Cabot. "What do you need?"

"I need more. I need something at all, or this guy is going to walk and I'll be laughed out of the courtroom; if I even make it that far."

Olivia let out a slightly nasty laugh, "You just want to look good in the courtroom."

Alex threw a look of daggers at Olivia. Her blood was boiling, and her voice was rising, "No, what I want is for people to do their jobs right, so I don't have to come in here and try fix up your mistakes. A violent, violent man is going to be walking free and I don't want that on my shoulders!" Alex paused to calm herself, "So please, find me something I can use. And make sure you do it properly."

The ADA left the way she came in. The Detectives sat in an awkward silence for a moment. Olivia returned to her desk and took a seat, "We're screwed."

- - -

Alex bit her lip; her face of confidence was faltering. She could hear her own heart beating as she watched the jury return to their seats. This was it. Cabot was good, and she knew it, but there was no way she could have won this one. She felt like she was hunting with no ammunition. She got a few good hits in, but nothing that would do any lasting damage, and Defence Attorney Langan knew this and pointed it out as much as he could.

"Has the jury reached a verdict?"

Alex held her breath; this was an important one. If he didn't get locked away, this man would do a lot more damage. No other criminal that she had shared a courtroom with had ever scared her as much as Richard French did. And he knew it. She had felt like a little girl questioning him on the stand during the trial. If she hadn't perfected her face of ice so well, she might have just run out of the room crying. He was cold and dangerous.

"We have your Honor."

Richard caught Alex's eye from across the room; it sent shivers down her spine.

"We find the defendant, Richard French, not guilty on all counts."

Cabot's heart sank. She looked behind her at the Detectives sitting near the back. Stabler looked mad; like he wanted to hit something, or someone. Alex matched the look on Olivia's face to how she was feeling. Guilty.

Olivia met Alex's eyes, but got up quickly. She didn't want a guilt trip from Cabot; she felt guilty enough.

"C'mon, let's get out of here." Olivia nodded and followed Elliot out of the coutroom.

"I can't believe we let him walk!"

"We didn't let him walk Olivia!"

"We let those women down. We dragged up all those memories, promising them we'd lock him up; that they'd be safe. We failed them."

"Liv, we did our best."

"It wasn't good enough."

Benson and Stabler climbed into the car.

"Why is this getting to you? More than the other's who get let off I mean."

"Elliot, this guy is evil. He's dangerous! Who know's what he'll do next!"

"This guy really has you spooked." Elliot looked at Olivia, waiting for a reply. She didn't say a word and Elliot clicked, "He threatened you, didn't he? Why didn't you report it?"

"I don't know. I couldn't be sure and I couldn't prove it."

Elliot shifted in his seat so he was facing Olivia, "What happened?"

Olivia closed her eyes and took a deep breath, deciding it would be easier to explain if she was a bit more calm. She opened her eyes and let out a startled cry. Elliot spun his head around to see Richard gazing in through the window. He smiled and waved.

Elliot quickly reached for the door handle to get out of the car, but Olivia grabbed his arm and pulled him back. "There's nothing you can do."

"I wanna know what the hell he did to you to get you so freaked out."

"Let's just get out of here."


	2. Chapter 2

Olivia smiled at her coffee as Elliot put it down in front of her, "Thanks."

Elliot sat down across from his partner at the small table in a cafe not far from the precinct, "Are you ready to talk yet?"

"Really, it was nothing. I was probably just overreacting."

"Well tell me and I can help you decide."

Olivia smiled. She appreciated he friend's care. She took a sip of her coffee and placed it back on the table. "I came home one night after we had interrogated Richard French and found about ten pages ripped from different magazines and newspapers. I didn't know what they were at first, but then I realised they all had a theme. Each page had the words 'You're Dead' on them somewhere in the text."

"He'd found articles with those words?"

"Not those words as singular words, but together, yes. I thought I was just being paranoid and was just reading into them too much. A few nights later there was a dead cat outside the building. It was a little bloody, but I didn't think anything of it until I got inside and found a bit of blood-covered cat fur at my door. That was also a day that we had French in the station."

"More with the death. Why didn't you say anything?"

"They don't mean anything Elliot! I can't pin them to anyone."

Stabler stood up, he was obviously worried and upset, "You should stay at mine tonight."

"I can't do that. I have to work late anyway. Maybe I'll just sleep there."

"I'll stay with you."

"You have a family Elliot. I'll be fine."

- - -

Olivia stretched as she yawned, then rested her head on her desk. She hadn't been lying when she said she had to work late. She looked at her watch; it was nearly 2am. It had been a quiet night for once and everyone else had gone home to take advantage of the extra time to sleep. The tired detective was contemplating going home when she heard a noise in the station. Someone was there.

The station was completely dark except for the glow of Olivia's computer. Benson quietly stood up and moved towards the direction she thought the sound had come from. It had sounded like the main entrance door. She grabbed her gun and held it out in front of her. The clicking sound of footsteps came closer.

"Stop! Who's there?"

There was a gasp and a THUMP sound. Olivia hurried over to the light switch. She turned it on and saw Alex on the floor, leaning against the wall.

"Shit! You nearly gave me a heart attack Olivia!"

"Alex? What the hell are you doing here?" Benson walked over the the startled blonde and gave her a hand up.

"I left some things here. What are you doing here?"

"Working."

"Right, well I'll let you get back to that."

Olivia looked at the bag that Alex was carrying, "An overnight bag? Having a sleepover at the precinct?"

"A hotel actually."

Olivia followed Alex as she made her way to Elliot's desk where she had left some important papers earlier that day.

"What's wrong with your place?"

"I could ask the same of you, but I don't feel like being nosey. I'll see you tomorrow Detective." With the papers she needed, Alex strode back towards the door and left, leaving Olivia a bit puzzled. _Why the hostility?_

Alex was already pretty jumpy before Olivia had scared the living daylights out of her. Walking from the station to her car, which was only a few meters away, she was a mess; jumping at every little sound. She hurried along and climbed in her car quickly; locking it after she got in. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself, then tried to start the car.

"Come on! Come on! Start!"

The panicking blonde kept turning the key, but nothing was happening. Alex punched the steering wheel and burst into tears. Someone appeared by her door and she let out an ear-splitting scream.

"Alex? Are you okay? It's just me. You dropped one of the papers on your way out."

Olivia peered in through the window in saw that Alex was sobbing hysterically.

"What's wrong? Open the door."

Alex's hands were so shakey she could barely unlock the door. Olivia pulled open the door, her face full of concern.

"What's wrong? What happened?"

"Dead battery I think."

"Why did you scream? Why are you crying?"

"You scared me, okay? Is your car here? Can you jump start me?"

Olivia explained that Elliot had dropped her off because he car was getting fixed. Alex seemed a bit freaked out by the idea of taking a cab, so they decided they'd go inside for the night. Olivia followed Alex into the building, still unsure as to why the usually overly-composed ADA had been in hysterics. Alex was trying to act cold, but Olivia could tell this girl was scared.


	3. Chapter 3

"Sleep well?" Elliot smiled at Olivia as he sat down behind his desk. Olivia was sitting at her desk with a coffee in her hand.

"Not one bit, but this is helping me out," she motioned towards her coffee and took a sip, "Did Alex get her car started?"

"Alex was here?"

"Yeah, she came to pick something up, then her car wouldn't start. I dozed off sometime and when I woke up she was gone."

Elliot shrugged, "I guess she did."

Fin walked in the room with a pad of paper in his hand, "Yo, we got a rape victim. Said she was kidnapped, then raped. Guy who reported it said she's a bit beaten up too. Man I have paperwork up to my chin. You guys want this one?" Fin handed the paper to Elliot.

- - -

Detectives Benson and Stabler arrived at the crime scene about twenty minutes later. It was an alley way behind a strip club, one known for being a prostitute hot spot. Elliot approached the head of the crime scene squad, "What happened?"

"Your vic just left in a bus, on the way to the hospital. As for the crime scene, very little did happen here. I'd say she was bashed and raped somewhere else before being dumped here."

"Was she a pro?"

"I would say probably not. Probably placed here so we'd think she was. I'll let you know if we find anything."

- - -

Elliot showed his badge to the nurse behind the counter at the hospital. "Special Victims. Someone was just brought in?"

"Right this way." The petite, blonde nurse led the two detectives down the corridor and stopped at a doorway, letting them pass.

Olivia stepped through the door and gasped.

"Oh my God, Alex!"

Alexandra Cabot was laying in the hospital bed, her face was cut, bruised and bloody. She stirred when she heard her name.

Olivia rushed over and sat on the side of the bed, "What happened?"

Alex raised her bandaged right arm and slowly rubbed her sore head.

"Hey guys."

She tried to sit up, but gave up when it proved to be too painful.

"Wanna start from the beginning?" Elliot asked from the end of the bed.

"I was at the precinct because my car wasn't starting. Olivia had fallen asleep and I was trying to. Then suddenly there was a hand over my mouth. He must have had something on it because I was out. I woke up in the back of a van. My arms and legs were tied...open, so I couldn't move. There was no one in the back of the van with me, but I could hear two men talking in the front. The van stopped and the men got in the back."

Alex stopped and closed her eyes. Olivia placed her hand on top of Alex's and gave it a very gentle squeeze, "I know this is hard."

"Would it be easier if I stepped out?"

Cabot looked at Elliot, "I don't think anything would make it easier."

She sighed and continued, "They were laughing and joking and...poking and prodding me; trying to make me more uncomfortable. Suddenly one of the guys just started hitting me. Anywhere and everywhere. It was like it turned him on or something. The other guy got back into the driver's seat and started driving while the man in the back started to rape me. I yelled, but the driver just turned the radio up. It felt like it went on forever. When he finished, the driver stopped and they swapped places. The man in the back dressed me up as a hooker and put my make up on. He also raped me, untied me, then dumped me in the alley. I fell on my head when they kicked me out and so I was out cold when someone found me."

"Did you see the men?"

"No, they had masks on when they came into the back. I would almost certainly put my life on it to say that one of the men, the one who was hitting me, was Richard French. His voice, the way he acted," She paused and shuddered, "the things he said...It was definately me. He wanted me to know it was him."


	4. Chapter 4

"I do not want protective..."

"You want Alex to though,"

"That's different Elliot,"

"How is it different? This guy is after both of you."

Benson and Stabler were on their way back to the precinct after interviewing Alex.

"We don't know that."

"We don't? Liv, what about the threats?"

"They weren't necessarily thr...oh my God, of course."

"What?" Elliot looked back and forth from the road to Olivia, trying to read her face, "What Liv?"

"Alex was so jumpy last night. She was so scared, but she wouldn't admit it to me. He'd obviously threatened her too."

"Well there you go; you'll probably be his next target, that's why I think you should have protect.."

"I don't want them Elliot! I don't want guys tailing me."

- - -

"You're in real danger Olivia. I think it's best if I pull you off the case."

Olivia and Elliot were standing in Cragan's office. They had filled him in on all that Alex had told them.

"But Captain..."

"I'm serious Olivia. You're off. And if you're not going to get protection, then I think you and Alex should stick together for a while."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't think it's wise for the two of you to be alone."

"But Captain," Elliot interjected, "they're both the targets, if we put them together than we just made it easier for them to find."

"By the looks of things, they already know Olivia and Alex's whereabouts; where they spend their time and when. At least together they have more of a chance of overpowering them. If we had room for it in the budget, I'd suggest we relocate you; house wise, for a time being, but that's not the case. Run the idea by Alex. If she agrees, I want you joined at the hip."

- - -

"Joined at the hip? He said that?"

Olivia nodded as she sat down in the chair beside Alex's hospital bed.

"So we'd have to...live together?"

"I assume that's what the Captain meant."

Alex sighed.

"No offense Olivia, I like you, but we don't have a lot in common. Besides work, we don't talk and we don't see each other. But I guess I don't enjoy being attacked, and, well, I do feel safer around you. Around people I mean. Just people I know...In general I feel safer."

Olivia smiled at Alex, who was looking quite a bit better than she was earlier in the day. She was sitting up now, with a pile of work in her lap. Her glasses were slightly bent from the attack.

"So Miss Cabot, your place or mine?"

- - -

The two women had settled on Alex's apartment. It was bigger, and she had a lot of stuff she needed for work. Alex was released a little after her conversation with Olivia, and the two headed to Olivia's place to pick up some things she'd need, before making their way to Alex's.

"I've never seen your place before," Olivia commented as she pulled up in the parking space.

"I don't see it a lot really myself."

They slowly made their way up to Alex's place; the ADA limping, and Olivia carrying a large box of her things. Alex put the key in the door and opened it. "Welcome to my humble abode."

To Olivia it was far from humble, "Nice place."

"Thanks."

The door opened into the living room. To the left was the kitchen, separated from the living room by kitchen counters. Through the kitchen, on the other side was a dining room and a stair case. To the right was Cabot's office. Alex pulled off her coat and hung it on the rack next to the door. She then hobbled towards the stairs, "Lucky for you, I have a guest room. My couch is shocking to sleep on."

Olivia followed the injured blonde up the stairs. They both stopped up the top, "First door is my room, second is yours, third is the bathroom."

Alex left Olivia to settle into her room and went downstairs to pour herself a glass of wine.

Olivia refreshed herself with a nice hot shower before heading down the stairs, "So what do you want to do about dinner?" She stopped at the kitchen counter and smiled, Alex was fast asleep on the couch.

The next morning Alex woke up to find herself in her bed. _How did I get here?_ That sleep did her well. She was already feeling a lot better. Physically anyway. She wasn't ready to deal with anything yet, so she just pushed it aside. The smell of pancakes greeted her nose as she walked down the stairs. Detective Benson was in her kitchen cooking. Olivia greeted her with a smile.

"Good morning Alex."

"Good morning. You cook?"

"Not often. Don't get much time, but I don't have to be in so early today, so I thought I'd cook breakfast. Sit down. They're ready."

Alex sat down at her dining table, which was usually unused. She smiled as Olivia put down a plate of pancakes in front of her, "Thank you. Maybe having a bad guy after us isn't so bad afterall."


	5. Chapter 5

Olivia was on the phone to Elliot, catching up on what was going on. Alex was sitting on the couch with one of her morning cups of coffee, watching the Detective.

"He didn't leave anything at all? Right. No proof. He's good at that. Ok, thank you. See you later." Olivia hung up and looked at Alex, "So far they have found nothing; no fluids, no hair, nothing. But they're looking for the van. Cragan suggested I stay with you, so I guess I could swing by the station, grab some paperwork I have left, then do it at your office, if that suits you?"

- - -

Alex tried her harderst to look like nothing had happened; she had piled the foundation on, and was trying really hard to conceal her limp, but it didn't help. Her face was still noticibly bruised and cut, and her leg hurt too bad to not limp. Still, she was dressed sharp and her hair was perfect as she walked into her office.

Olivia sat quitely on the couch doing paperwork, as Cabot sat at her desk typing, and occassionally making noises of frustration. They passed the entire morning like that until Olivia got up to stretch her legs. She looked at her watch, "What do you say we go grab something for lunch?"

"Oh I usually just get mine brought up." Alex replied without looking up from her computer screen.

"It's kinda nice outside, I thought maybe..."

Alex looked up. _Olivia's not used to being cooped up all day_.

"You know what? That sounds like a great idea."

The two women had a nice lunch at a cafe just around the corner from the building. They chatted about things that most people chat about; movies, music, men. Alex had pointed out quite correctly: They had nothing in common.

Despite not agreeing on anything at all, they still enjoyed themselves, and continued chatting throughout the day as they worked. It was getting close to dinner time by the time they had left the office, so they decided to go out for tea.

Alex chose the resteraunt, and they sat down and ordered.

"It's kinda of sad the only date I can get is with a detective who's job is to protect me. They could have sent me a strapping young man."

"I could call Elliot..?"

Alex laughed, "No, you'll do just fine. Maybe it should be you and Elliot on this date."

"Me and Elliot? He's married."

"I didn't think they were happy."

"They have their issues, but they're working through them, and I'm glad. They're a nice couple."

"So you don't have those feelings for Elliot?"

"Sometimes I think I do. Sometimes I think we're too close... No. No I don't have those feelings for him. And what do you mean you can't get a date? You're beautiful, successful.."

"I have no time to meet people, let alone date them."

"There is something we have in common then."

Olivia smiled at her companion as the waiter brought them their food. They ate in silence for a while until Olivia's train of thought brought her back to why they were eating dinner together. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

"Really? You've been playing it cool, I guess that's what you do, but you went through a really horrible..."

"I'm fine Olivia."

Olivia heard the tone in Cabot's voice that said _Drop it_, so she did.

The rest of the night was filled with small talk about past cases they had done together. They finished their meal and walked back to Alex's car.

As they approached the car, which was parked in the restraunt's parking lot, they noticed that the right-hand back tire was flat.

"Shoot!" Alex kicked the tire.

"Do you have a spare?"

"Yeah in the trunk."

As Olivia walked around to the back of the car, they heard an engine rev. It revved again; louder. Both women spun around to see the a black van take off and head fast towards them.

Olivia grabbed Alex's hand and pulled her out of the way; they both fell on the ground out of the van's way. The van stopped right before it hit Alex's car. A masked man leaned out of the open window and spat on Olivia before taking off.

"Gross!" Olivia was about to wipe her spit when Alex grabbed her arm.

"Wait! That could be evidence."

"You mean I have to have spit on my face until we can get it to the lab?"

Alex smiled, "You saved me. Thank you."


	6. Chapter 6

Something happened to this chapter when I took it from my laptop to the PC to upload it. Something corrupted my file and so I had to re-write it. But it's here now lol.

* * *

Olivia and Alex headed straight to the lab to get the spit tested. Olivia wanted nothing more than to wipe it off her face, and Alex was worried it wouldn't work. They made their way to the precinct while they waited for the results. Everyone was out on a job, and Cragan assured them there were no new developments. He also told Olivia off for trying to look up the number plates of the van, "You're not on this case Olivia. Write the number down and leave it on Elliot's desk. Go home!" So Cabot and Benson got back in the car and headed back home.

"Richard wouldn't be stupid enough to spit on me, but hopefully his stupid henchman is in the system so we can..." Olivia looked over at Alex; he face was blank and she was staring straight ahead, "Alex?"

Cabot's eyes filled with tears and they overflowed on to her face. He head fell into her hands and she started sobbing. Olivia's heart ached for her friend as she watched as Alex's body shook with each sob. Olivia pulled into the next free park she found and shut off the engine. She leaned over and held Alex as she cried.

Alex cried into Olivia's arms for a good ten minutes; until she had no more tears to cry. But even when she had finished, she didn't move straight away. She found the arms of the detective rather comforting, and she enjoyed that feeling.

Olivia stroked Alex's perfect, blonde hair as she held her. He hair smelt nice. _What are you doing? Why are you smelling her hair?_

Alex felt Olivia go tense, so she sat up. She patted down her hair and stared straight ahead. "Thank you."

The rest of the car ride was full of awkward silence and as soon as they got home they tried to get rid of it. Alex turned on the television, and Olivia headed up the stairs for a shower.

The detective's phone started ringing while she was in the shower. She stepped out and wrapped a towel around her before digging around the pocket of her jeans that were on the floor, to find her phone.

"Benson." They had a hit.

Olivia threw the bathroom door open and nearly knocked Alex over as she was exiting her bedroom, "The DNA had a hit. A small-time crim who goes by the name of 'Pinky.' It's not a lot, but it's something!"Olivia smiled.

Alex smiled back, "That's great."

The two women were standing just inches apart, but neither of them made the move to step back. Neither of them knew why either. Alex smiled at Olivia's choice of wardrobe; or lack of. Olivia looked down, remembering she was still only in a towel.

Alex moved her hand and touched Olivia's bare arm. It sent shivers through her whole body.

Olivia felt it too, and stepped back; disappearing into the bathroom. Alex was left standing there; confused about what had just happened.

A glass of wine greeted the now-dressed detective as she made her way down the stairs and into the kitchen. Alex was sitting on the couch with a glass of wine and a box of Chinese take-out.

"I hope you don't mind, I got take out."

"Mind? Not at all." Olivia smiled as she took a seat next to the blonde.

"I think I remember Pinky. I prosecuted him a while ago. He didn't get much time, I kinda hoped he'd straighten himself out. He was so young."

"Sadly, we see re-offenders far too often," Olivia paused and looked at her companion, "You know what? We're a lot more similar that we though. Your taste in music is shocking, and your movies would put me to sleep, but I think we're a lot alike and that's why we clash so often on cases."

"I think I have to agree Detective. Except the part about my music being shocking."

The two women laughed and enjoyed their take-out together.

Nearly two bottles of wine later, the girls had finished their dinner and made their way over to Alex's stereo where Olivia was going through her collection. Olivia laughed as Alex defended her CDs as if she was a defence attorney.

Sure there was nothing in there that she would like, Olivia walked across the room and flopped onto the couch. In mock-anger, Alex refused to take a seat. Benson grabbed her hand and pulled her, Alex landing right on top of the slightly-intoxicated detective. Cabot tried to sit up, but she wasn't able to, "I'm sorry detective, I hope you like me like this because I think I'll be here for a while." Her words were slighty slurred.

"Well I do."

Alex looked at Olivia and realised she was serious. She didn't know what to do with that. What did it mean? Alex leaned in close and stole a kiss from Olivia. It was short, but it was enough to make her want more. She searched Benson's eyes for some sort of reaction. More specifically; for permission, but it wasn't needed. Olivia captured the blonde's lips in her own, sending tingles through both their bodies.


	7. Chapter 7

Alex put her hands around Olivia's head and deepended the kiss. Olivia ran her hands up and down her back. She was getting hot. Alex tried to remove her jacket without breaking the kiss that was bringing her so much pleasure. It wasn't that difficult to do, or at least it wouldn't have been if she hadn't had so much to drink.

Tearing her lips away from Olivia's, Alex struggled with the sleeves of her jacket. Her balance wasn't quite what it should be. Alex tumbled right off Olivia and onto the floor. She burst out in laughter. Olivia laughed too, and soon they were both laughing uncontrollably.

"Sorry to spoil your fun, but GET UP!" A voice from the darkened doorway to Olivia's office made both women jump. Olivia stood up immediately and grabbed Alex's hand to help her up. Richard French stepped out of the shadows, pointing a shawn-off shotgun and the detective and the ADA.

"I knew it was you."

"Oh yay, good for you. You're so clever detective. Pity you're going to be too dead to tell anyone."

"I already did, and they're on their way now." Olivia lied, but she hoped her confidence would spook him. She also hoped she sounded more sober than she felt.

"You're lying!" Richard whacked Olivia hard over the head with his gun and she fell to the ground, unconscious.

Alex couldn't fake her confidence right now, even though she knew it would probably help her out. She was shaking uncontrollably and let out a small yelp when he pointed the gun in her direction. "You're first. Shower." Alex complied and made her way to the bathroom, Richard's gun poking her in the back as she went.

Olivia stirred and opened her eyes to see Alex and Richard going up the stairs. She grabbed her phone out of her pocket and held down '1' for Elliot's speed dial. She looked at her watch as the phone rang. It was past 1am; he would surely be in bed. _Pick up, pick up!_

"You okay Liv?"

"Elliot! You're awake!" She whispered.

"I wasn't. What's wrong?"

"French is here. He has taken Alex up the stairs." A gun shot from upstairs made Olivia jump, and her heart raced, "Quickly El!"

Olivia hung up and got up off the floor. Her gun was upstairs in her room. She ran as quietly as she could up the stairs and ducked into her room, grabbing her gun. Holding it out in front of her, she approached the bathroom door. "Drop your weapon!"

Another shot was fired, and it missed Olivia's head by inches. There was a nice hole through Alex's wall. Olivia looked through it. She couldn't see much, but she could see Alex and she was okay. Olivia sighed a breath of relief.

"Drop _your_ weapon Detective, or this blonde cutie gets a bullet in the head right now."

Olivia froze; not sure what to do. She'd sobered up a bit, but she the wine was clouding her judgement. She certainly didn't trust her aim. She held her gun in front of the door, and dropped the cartridge onto the ground before also dropping the gun, "I'm going to come in."

Olivia stepped into the doorway with her hand up.

"Stand in the corner and don't move. You're next." He then turned back to Alex, "Get in the shower."

Shaking, Alex stepped into the shower. _What is he going to do?_

Richard raised the gun to Cabot's head, "Makes it easier to clean in here," he grinned. He then hesitated and looked at Olivia. Lowering his gun, he unzipped his fly, "I might have some fun with this first."

As if it was possible, Alex's heart sunk further. _Just kill me and get it over and done with_.

Olivia, on the other hand, saw this as an opportunity for more time until Elliot got there.


	8. Chapter 8

As soon as he had answered his phone, Elliot was already getting dressed and he was ready to leave as soon as Olivia had hung up. He grabbed his car keys and ran outside. The cold air hit him like a slap in the face. He got in the car, thrust the keys into the ignition, and said a silent prayer for his friends as he started the car up. _Don't let anything happen to them._

- - -

Alex said a silent prayer of her own as she stood shaking in her shower. _Let me die! Please! Let me die!_ Tears were falling silently down her face. She tried to pull herself together, but couldn't; it was all too much. She just wanted it to end.

Richard stepped towards the traumatised blonde. He brought his gun up so it was inches from her nose. Alex let out a sob and slid to the bottom of the shower as her legs gave way. Richard chuckled, then turned to Olivia.

"Who wants to go first?"

Olivia wasn't going to let him touch Alex again. Her heart broke at the sight of Alex sobbing on the floor of the shower. She didn't exactly want to _give_ herself to him either. _Hurry up Elliot!_

Olivia took a step forward.

"You wanna play first, huh?" Benson didn't look at Richard; she was trying to get eye contact from Cabot, but she was just staring at the floor. _Look at me dammit!_

"On your knees." Olivia shot Richard a disgusted look before slowly lowering herself to her knees. Her gaze was back onto Cabot. She really wanted her attention.

- - -

The traffic was pretty good for most of the drive. A three-car smash along the way had forced Elliot to take another route, but it didn't slow him down too much. He arrived at Alex's apartment building and parked illegally out the front. Triple-checking he had his gun, he took the steps three at a time, quickly making his way to Alex's place.

- - -

Kneeling in front of the rotten scum, Olivia desperately searched for the eyes of her dear friend. Panic started to sweep over the detective. She tried to fight it off; tried not to think of what was going to happen if she didn't have Cabot's help, but it was hard to do when it was staring her in the face...quite literally. _I can't do this on my own Alex_.

As if Alex had heard her last though, she looked at Olivia. The detective was staring right at her. The look on her face told her Benson had an idea. Olivia's eyes quickly flashed to the large, broken tile next to Alex's right hand. Cabot gave a nod of understanding and the unspoken plan was put into motion.

"Well what are you waiting for Detective Benson?"

Olivia shot Richard a quick, little grin before swinging her arm and hitting his exposed genitals as hard as she could. Alex grabbed the broken tile and stood up.

He let out a cry of pain before bringing his gun upon her, "You little bit-"

Alex brought the tile down hard on his head. Richard fell to the ground and Olivia rushed to grab his gun. He wasn't giving it over that easy.

There was a struggle for the gun, then it went off. It was exceptionally loud, echoing in the small bathroom.

Blood ran onto the white tiles.

- - -

Elliot had just reached Alex's door when he heard the gun shot. _Don't be hurt. Don't be hurt!_

The door was locked, so he kicked it in.

- - -

Richard's lifeless body slumped on top of Olivia's arm. She closed her eyes and let out a sigh of relief.

"It's over Alex."

Olivia could hear Elliot bounding up the stairs. She smiled, letting out a laugh.

"That was a close one!"

"Liv?" Elliot called from the top of the stairs.

"In the bathroom! He's down. We got him."

Elliot stepped into the bathroom and looked at Olivia laying on the bloody tiles. Richard was lying lifeless next to her and Alex was in the shower. Slumped in a pool of blood. Except it wasn't Richard's.

"Alex?!"

Olivia sat up as Elliot rushed over to the ADA. She saw Cabot and let out a small cry.


	9. Chapter 9

Olivia sat on a chair beside Alex's hospital bed. Bent forward, her head was resting next to Alex's hand. She had been there all day and was absolutely exhausted. They had called for a bus back at Cabot's. Olivia went with her, while Elliot stayed to wait for another bus for Richard. The doctors had patched Alex up the best they could and now Olivia was just waiting for her to wake up again. Wake up long enough so that Olivia could apologise.

"How is she?" Olivia looked up; Elliot was standing in the doorway.

"The doctor said she should be just fine. They'll have to reconstruct her collar bone, but apart from that, nothing too serious."

"Good." Elliot smiled at his partner as he stepped further into the room.

"I just feel so guilty."

"Don't Liv. It wasn't your fault."

"I was supposed to protect her."

"You did. You got Richard!"

"Got her too."

Elliot put his hand on Olivia's shoulder, "It'll be okay Liv."

Olivia half-heartedly smiled up at him, "Thanks."

"I have to get going. Look after youself and get some rest."

Benson looked back at Alex as her partner left. Her eyes were open and she was looking at Olivia.

"Alex! You're awake! How are you feeling?"

"You shot me detective. How do you think I feel?" Alex flinched with pain, but grinned a little. Olivia missed the grin though and dropped her head into her hands, crying.

"I'm so sorry! I-I-I'm sorry!"

Alex put her hand on Olivia's knee, "I was joking. I know you'd never hurt me."

Olivia ignored her and continued to apologize. Alex squeezed her knee, trying to get her attention.

"Olivia Benson, look at me!" Olivia looked up and wiped her eyes, "Bad joke. I see that now. I know you would never intentionally hurt me. You shot the bastard, that's all that matters. If you hadn't have got him, then I would have got a lot more than a busted shoulder." Alex smiled and gently squeezed the detective's knee, "And I'm glad you got him before he got you."

The two women sat in silence for a moment. Olivia put her hand on Alex's and gently squeezed it, "Thank you."

"I didn't realise I was that bad for company! Next time, just let me know, instead of shooting me." Alex winked at Olivia, and this time Olivia got that it was a joke.

"You're never going to let me forget this, are you?" She laughed.

"Talk about two birds with one stone."

Olivia rolled her eyes and laughed.

- - -

Realizing she'd probably have a large pile of paperwork to do over the incident, Olivia finally left Cabot's hospital room and headed back to the precinct. She was right about the paperwork, but she couldn't even start on that until she'd reported to Cragan, who informed her of the other million things she's have to do.

Benson sat down at her desk and started filling out a report. She didn't realize how long she'd been there until Elliot brought her back to reality with the invitation of coffee and something to eat, a few hours later. Ignoring the large pile of work she still had to do, Liv picked up her coat and followed her partner out.

- - -

Inhaling the scent of her still-very-hot coffee, Olivia smiled. It was a relaxing feeling knowing that Richard was dead. Elliot sat across from his partner and smiled.

"So how did you and Cabot go living together?" He grinned, thinking about the many heated arguments the two women had had over the years of working together.

"We got on quite well actually," she replied with a little smile.

"What do you mean by that?"

"By what?"

"That smile! What was that?"

Olivia blushed and lowered her head, pretending to be interested in her coffee cup. She could tell Elliot was looking at her, waiting for an answer. She sighed, and looked up. Her smile was replcaced by a look of confusion, "We kissed."

"Pardon?"

"Alex and I. We...kissed."

Elliot looked a little shocked. In all the years he had worked with Benson, he's never thought.."You like women now?"

"Not now. Not just now. I dated a woman back in college. I-I don't know what it was. We were drunk; me and Alex I mean"

"Maybe you should talk to her."

Olivia didn't respond, she just took a sip of her coffee. Elliot's look of confusion changed to a look of amusement. Olivia gave him a questioning look.

"What? I just think that the idea of you and Alex is...kinda hot."

- - -

The next morning Olivia decided to stop by the hospital on the way to work, to see how Alex was doing, and maybe talk to her about what happened.

The ADA was sitting up in bed reading the paper when Benson walked in the room.

"Good morning detective."

"Morning Cabot. Sleep well?"

"Not too bad, considering."

Alex bit her lip as she noticed a look of guilt in Olivia's face. _Watch what you say!_

Olivia sat down in the chair and looked at her injured friend. She took a deep breath, "Alex, about the other night..."

"Olivia, we were drunk, it was just a bit of fun, it didn't mean anything, so if you want to just pretend nothing happened, that's fine."

Alex had replied without even looking up from her paper. It caught Olivia a bit off guard and she didn't really know how to respond. Sure they were drunk, but did it really mean nothing? _Nothing to her._

"Right, yeah, of course. Good idea."Olivia stood up again, "Well that's all really. Just wanted to make sure you were okay." With that, Olivia left the room, fighting back tears she didn't quite understand.

Alex watched her friend leave the room. She didn't quite understand her reaction. She said what she thought Olivia would want to hear. The words had hurt to come out though. It was a lie and she didn't like lying to her friend, but she was confused and it was for the best. She wiped away a tear that had escaped. _It's for the best._


	10. Chapter 10

Hey, soon ahead I want to make a bit of time pass...so I was wondering should I do that in this fic or finish this one off and start a sequel?

* * *

Alex put on a tough face when people were around. When people came to see if she was alright, she joked about what happened like it was nothing. The only person who she wanted to talk to; the only person who knew what she was going through, hadn't been back to visit her since their very short conversation a few days earlier.

Alex doubted she would be able to be honest with Olivia anyway. The cold exterior only melted away at night, when everyone was gone and she was alone in the hospital room. She had cried herself to sleep every night since her first attack. Thinking back, before the attack, Alex couldn't think of a time recently, or in the last three years at all, when she had truely been relaxed. Sure she had always had a case to prepare, but that she could do at home, on her couch, with a glass of red, listening to some Sinatra. But that was before she went into the Witness Protection Program.

Since then she had always been on her guard; always scared. Even coming back to New York; she thought she could go back to normal; be Alex Cabot again. It didn't happen. She thought it would just take time to settle again. It still didn't happen.

Tears fell down Cabot's cheek, as she sat up in the dark hospital room. Her fingers shaking as she typed out a letter on her laptop.

- - -

Olivia sat alone, on her couch, in her apartment. It was dark and the light was off, but she didn't care. She was lost in her thoughts. Thoughts about what happened the other night with Alex, about what she said, and why was she feeling like this?

Olivia and Alex had clashed many times on the job. They had slung words back and forth at each other that would make people think they hated each other, but they didn't. Sure, sometimes they butted heads, but they repected each other and got along fine most of the time.

She was trying to remember if there were signs before; signs that she'd missed. She and Alex had only ever been friends. Olivia missed her company when Alex had gone into the Witness Protection Program, but nothing more than what you'd usually feel when a work mate leaves; except the part where she thought Cabot was dead.

There were moments. Little looks, little smiles, little jokes. They were there. They had always been there. Before Cabot left. Alex was different now. She didn't drop her guard and share a joke, or have a laugh over a coffee. It was as if that face she put on to protect herself couldn't come off anymore. She acted cool, but Olivia knew that underneath that mask there was a woman who was scared.

Olivia decided she'd go visit the ADA when she had a chance tomorrow, before drifting off into a restless sleep.

- - -

"Olivia."

Benson looked up from her desk. Suprised at the person standing in front of her, "Alex. You're out. I was going to come see you today."

"No need. I'm okay. I just came to say goodbye."

"Goodbye? What do you mean?" Olivia stood up.

"I've handed in my resignation."

"What? Why? Where are you going to go?"

"I might go closer to home. Maybe join my father's firm. He's always wanted me to."

"Alex.."

"I have to go Olivia. I've got a lot to work out. Thanks for everything."

The look on Olivia's face broke Cabot's heart, but there was nothing she could do about it, so she turned and walked out. Attempting to look as confident as possible.

Confused, Olivia watched as Alex left, arguing with herself about whether she should go after her or not.

She sat back down. What was the point? She had made her feelings pretty clear the other day. _Let her go_.


End file.
